Hilco Partners with Computer CORE to Launch Digital Skill Education Program in Alexandria, Va.
Hilco Redevelopment Partners (HRP) recently announced its latest local collaboration in Alexandria, Va. The leading industrial redevelopment company has partnered with local nonprofit Computer CORE, to which it made an initial contribution of $10,000 that will go toward educating underserved adults with foundational digital and professional skills. The program seeks to ensure that the Alexandria workforce has equitable access to good-paying jobs in the modern economy.
Employment prospects include the projected 2,000 jobs that will be created through HRP’s redevelopment of the former coal-fired Potomac River Generating Station. Planning for the project, which is being redeveloped by HRP in partnership with the City of Alexandria, was recently recognized by the Virginia Chapter of the American Planning Association (APA Virginia) with the 2023 Red Clay Development of the Year Award.
The revitalization of the shuttered coal-fired power plant site (formerly GenOn) promises to create a vibrant mixed-use development that will include more than five acres of open space, affordable housing, space dedicated to the arts and a coordinated sustainability strategy.
Since acquiring the property in 2020, Hilco has held regular tours of the site for the local community, as well as meetings and events in collaboration with local organizations to discuss plans and possibilities for the site and welcome feedback from neighbors.
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Notably, remediation of the approximately 20-acre site is expected to take some time. In fact, depending on how long the company needs to complete an environmental cleanup of the site, the project could take up to 10 years. Deconstruction of the plant is likely to begin in mid-2024.
Plans for the property that have been discussed so far call for 14 acres of publicly accessible open space; improved connections for pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles via road improvements; as well as the creation of a people-focused street along the waterfront. The site will also be connected to the Mount Vernon Trail.
Additionally, last year, the City of Alexandria and the National Park Service approved a Coordinated Development District plan, which allowed for a mix of uses of between 20% and 60% of the site for commercial use — new Alexandria office space in Old Town North, as well as hotel, retail, arts and innovation — and between 40% and 80% for residential use (including affordable housing), depending on market demands.
“We are committed to transforming this extraordinary site and delivering a vibrant and sustainable space that will create economic growth and opportunity for the Alexandria community,” said HRP CEO, Roberto Perez. “It is imperative that our neighbors have the opportunity to access the jobs this project will create. Partnering with a fantastic organization like Computer CORE, with over two decades of work here in Alexandria, will help to ensure that we deliver on our values of economic, environmental and community sustainability.”
“We thank HRP for their partnership and look forward to collaborating in our mission of training the workforce of tomorrow,” said Computer CORE Executive Director, Donna Walker James. “Since its inception, Computer CORE has provided technology education to more than 5,000 people. This contribution will ensure our programs are staffed and resourced to grow that number and ensure our students are qualified as they pursue opportunities in a modern economy.”
The modern economy keeps growing along the Potomac in the suburban submarkets of Washington, D.C. Not far up the river from this HRP redevelopment site, Amazon also recently celebrated the opening of its HQ2 in Crystal City, Arlington, where the company reportedly intends to bring together about 25,000 workers by 2030.
